José Tito Mendonça, researcher at the Institute for Plasmas and Nuclear Fusion (IPFN) and retired Full Professor (IST Department of Physics), has launched his book “The Quantum Nature of Light: From photon states to quantum fluids of light”, published by the Institute of Physics. This book gives a broad perspective on quantum light phenomena and goes beyond traditional quantum optics, to include quantum fluids of light and the complete electromagnetic vacuum.

The first part of the book includes basic electromagnetic field quantisation, the characterisation of quantum photon states and elementary photon-atom interactions. Secondly, quantum fluids of light are explored, such as recent areas as Bose-Einstein condensation, light vortices and superfluid light. Finally, the last section of the book focuses on a more complete description of quantum vacuum, which includes electron-positron states.

The book aims to make the bridge between these three somewhat distinct aspects of the quantum states of light. The audience for the book includes researchers and advanced students in quantum technology including quantum optics, metrology and computing.

José Tito Mendonça is the scientific coordinator of IPFN’s Laboratory for Quantum Plasmas (LQP), and has developed pioneering work on photon acceleration, neutrino magnetohydrodynamics, and twisted waves in plasmas.